


Applause (Being Rewritten)

by sweetener_alex



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - No One Direction, Famous Louis Tomlinson, Famous Zayn Malik, Harry Has Long Hair, Larry Stylinson Is Real, M/M, Non-Famous Harry, OT5 Friendship (One Direction), Sexual Content, Tour Bus, Touring
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-15
Updated: 2021-02-15
Packaged: 2021-03-15 06:56:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,581
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29432067
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sweetener_alex/pseuds/sweetener_alex
Summary: Louis Tomlinson is the BIGGEST pop sensation of the 21st Century. Harry Styles is just a regular college student with massive talent. When Harry attends Louis' tour, his life will change forever on an insane trip that never ends. Will Louis find love? Will Harry find his true meaning? Who the f*ck knows? Because I don't. or do I?
Relationships: Harry Styles/Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan/Original Female Character(s), Zayn Malik/Liam Payne
Kudos: 6





	Applause (Being Rewritten)

**Author's Note:**

> trigger warning // mentions of fortnite  
> **NOTICE**  
> I've decided to keep some names of family members but don't let their actions in this work of fiction, cloud you're judgement of the actual people. enjoy!!  
> this is also my first attempt at writing fanfic so feel free to leave constructive criticism in the comments. ty!!

"Good Morning, Darling! It's time for school!"

Harry is woken up by the loud, projected voice of his mother. His room still dark with no lights on.

"Mother, I don't need you to wake me up. I'm in University, not Primary", replies Harry in his morning voice.

"I know, I know. It's just the fact you are 40 minutes late to your first lecture of the day", Anne, Harry's mom, refutes.

Harry's eyes open in panic. FUCK. He forgot to set his alarm. He jumps up and runs straight to the kitchen where he sees his remaining family members eating breakfast. Gemma, and Scott (Harry's Step-Dad) sitting around the sleek, glass dining table eating a nice continental breakfast prepared by Emmanuel, the family chef. Everyone stops what they're doing to stare at Harry. "You're late", Scott says, pointing out the obvious. Silence. Harry goes up to the platter with toast and grabs one before leaving the room in a rush. He doesn't look back as he ascends the stairs. His relationship has been strange with his family for a long time. His mom is the only one who really cares to pay attention to him.

He enters his room and throws away the toast. "Who needs breakfast?", Harry mutters under his breathe. Harry approaches his closet, looking for acceptable but quick outfit. The closet still filled to the brim with the clothes & belongings of his ex-boyfriend. Most of it stained & ripped, just like his personality. He pulls a clean white tee and some overalls he found on the floor. He dresses quickly, and rushes to the en-suite. Brushing, flossing, and mouth wash all done. He runs his hands through his curly, long hair, making sure it's just a tad bit messy. Just how he likes it. He returns into his room and collects his belongings before making a mad dash to the front door. He passes Scott, now returning to his bedroom, but doesn't bat an eye. Gemma, still wrapping up her breakfast in the kitchen. He collects his keys and speed-walks to his car. 

A sleek black 1968 Corvette Stingray convertible. Harry gets in slowly and places his belongings in the passenger seat. He puts the keys in the ignition and begins the car. His mom, Anne, waving her goodbyes from the porch. He reverses carefully out of the driveway and begins his drive to campus. He's missed his 1st lecture for today, but he hopes to catch his next one. The autumn air, rushing through Harry's locks as Britney Spears' _Baby_ _One More Time..._ plays over the radio. Very 90s chic, if you ask me. 

Harry's car gliding down the road gracefully, but that changes when he slams on the breaks.

"Zayn?!", Harry asks as he spots what looks like a soaked Zayn Malik.

"Harry, oh my god. You're an angel. Can you please give me a ride?", Zayn says as he approaches Harry's car.

"Yes, of course. Just be careful with the seats. They're leather.", Harry says as he unlocks the car. "What happened to you?! You're soaked.", Harry adds.

"Melissa struck again. This time with a hose.", Zayn remarks with reserved aspect in his voice. He doesn't like to talk about his relationship with Malissa. Most of the time they are on thin ice or smashing in the bathroom stalls next to Lecture Hall A. It seems quite toxic, to be frankly honest.

"I'm guessing you tried to break up with her. Good guess?", Harry says in an easy tone as begins to drive again. 

"Spot on. She went berserk, man. She didn't even take the Louis Tomlinson tickets I got to calm her down.", Zayn replies while drying himself off with a towel he found in Harry's gym bag.

"You got her tickets to a concert as a consolation gift?!", Harry giggles loudly. "No wonder she went crazy.", Harry adds on.

"Yah. She kept yapping on about it, so I pulled some strings and got VIP tickets.", Zayn says as he pulls the damp tickets out of his pocket.

"How the fuc-", Harry tries to speak.

"Louis' is a family friend. I've known him my whole life.", Zayn interrupts. Zayn's parents own the largest international Record Label. You name the pop star, they have them signed.

"How come I've never heard about this?", Harry nudges Zayn for answers. How did Harry miss such a big thing?

"I don't know. It wasn't ever a true subject of importance.", Zayn shrugs. "Wait! Why don't we go to the concert? It'll be mad fun!", Zayn exclaims with hope in his voice.

"We've got classes, plus where is the concert even at?", Harry refutes dismissively. 

"Wembley Stadium...", Zayn says quietly. So quietly, you could hear the crickets on the road passing by.

"Wembley Stadium?! As in London's Wembley Stadium?!, Harry exclaims. Zayn nods slowly. "Sheesh, that's a proper while away, don't ya think?", Harry adds.

"I know, but we don't have anything better to do!", Zayn says with his puppy eyes and frown now in full effect. Harry begins to fall for it.

"I don't know, man. He's not really my cup of tea.", Harry says hesitantly. He genuinely thinks about it for a few moments. Maybe it'll be fun for Harry to get out, once in a while. "Fuck it!", Harry yells as he pulls over and sets the GPS to Wembley Stadium. Zayn's face now has a ginormous smile on it. Harry shoots his mom a text, _"Gone to London, see you tomorrow x"._

...

"This shit is going to be fire! I just know it!", Zayn yells at the top of his lungs. 

"It better be.", Harry mutters as he focuses on the road.

"You'll finally be able to let go. That John dude was holding you back, proper big time.", Zayn says as he nudges Harry's shoulder.

"I'm happy that you care for me, but I don't think a Louis Tomlinson concert is the therapeutic experience you think it is.", Harry replies as Zayn returns into the car.

"How do you know? He's very talented and a great person to hang with.", Zayn adds on.

"Mhm. I'll be the judge of that.", Harry retorts as he starts to feel weird.

Harry feels odd inside. Almost nervous. His hands all sweaty on the steering wheel. The high speed of the car and his unstable emotions don't mix well. His emotions have been a wreck since the break-up and he's found it extremely difficult to control them. Zayn has been there since Day 1 and has been a big help but sometimes he just doesn't understand or notice it. Harry does the only rational thing, and slows the car down. He instantly feels less overwhelmed. Zayn doesn't seem to notice. Good. 

The rest of the drive goes by uneventfully as Harry managed to calm down. Zayn continued on his phone doing whatever, but before they know they've arrived.

_"Louis Tomlinson, Walls Stadium Tour"_

Crowds of people flocking to the turn-styles like little kids at Toys-R-Us. Harry & Zayn both rush out of the car and get ready. Zayn hands Harry his ticket and pulls him towards the entrance. The crowds of concert-goers multiplying by the second, as they jam themselves through security.

...

"When is this going to fucking start?!", Harry yells over the crowd.

"Soon!", Zayn replies quickly .

Harry & Zayn somehow secured spots at the very front of the pit. The stage just 2 meters away from them. 1.5 if they stretch their arms out. Harry's phone rings. It's his mom. He quickly declines the call and continues waiting for a sign that the concert is beginning. Zayn, although has been frisked away by a group of girls. He seems to enjoy the attention that females give him even if he's dating someone. It's a bad habit but there's nothing Harry could do about it.

The lights dim and the crowd gets very loud. Smoke machines fill the stage with artificial fog. **_"10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1"_**. The stage lights up and Louis ascends from below the stage. The crowd starts going crazy. Yelling, and shoving Harry into the barricades. Zayn yelling at the top of his lungs. Defenceless begins to play. Louis' singing silenced out by the crowd. 

"I can't hear a fucking word!", Zayn yells into Harry's ear.

"Me neither. What do we do?", Harry asks but Zayn seems to be missing. He's ran off by himself. He grabs his phone from his pocket and dials Zayn's number. Voice mail. Harry begins to get upset. He calls again. This time he answers. It's very noisy on the other end.

"Where the fuck are you?", Harry asks viciously.

"Backstage, mate", Zayn replies loudly.

"How the fuck? You just left me!", Harry retorts with anger building up inside him.

"I'm sorry! Louis is a personal friend of the family, I'll have you cleared to come backstage!", Zayn apologizes.

"Fine. I'll see you in 5 minutes.", Harry says before ending the call abruptly. Harry pushes his way through the crowd to the side of the stage. There's a blonde woman with a tablet. He approaches her. He's nervous to ask. What if they deny him backstage access?

"Hi-", Harry says before being interrupted.

"I'm Laura, follow me please.", the blonde woman says.

Harry follows her through a crowd of buff security guards and black curtains. It's organized chaos as stage hands push costume-racks around the stage manager is yelling commands. They don't stop walking though. She escorts him into some sort of hallway. It seems endless but they continue to walk. They continue to pass stage hands pushing equipment and costumes towards the stage, while they walk the opposite direction. Who knew that backstage at the Wembley was so complex? Harry sure didn't. Hallway after hallway, they continued to casually stroll down the quiet backstage area until Laura took a sharp turn into an inconspicuous corridor. He could hear Zayn's loud laughter and a few other.

"Harry! You're here!", Zayn says as he pops out of a room at the end of the corridor. Harry walks up to him.

"What is this place, and who are these people?", Harry asks hesitantly as Zayn leads him into some sort of dressing room. He observes his surroundings. Bland decoration, nothing special to Harry.

"This is Liam, Louis' manager, and this is Niall, Louis' personal assistant!", Zayn says excitedly.

"It's nice to meet you, Harry. We've heard lots about you from Zayn.", Liam says with a big smile. They shake hands as Harry looks him up and down. Harry does that whenever he meets someone new he's not sure of. Famous people don't give him good vibes.

"and I'm Niall. If you need anything, just ask me, ok?", said Niall with a teethy grin on his face.

"It's nice to meet you both.", Harry says smiling back at both of them. "Zayn, what are we doing back here?", He whispers into Zayn's ear.

"Well, I was thinking you would like to meet Louis, plus I haven't seen him in a proper minute.", Zayn says aloud defeating the purpose of whispering.

They all take their seats and engage in conversations. Harry talking to Liam about how he met Louis. Zayn's playing Fortnite with Niall on their phones. Fortnite, ugh. You'd think Zayn would interact with the group more.

...

Stage hands begin flooding the dressing room. The concert must've ended already. Harry checks his phone. "24 Missed Calls from Mother". Harry curses under his breath before stepping out the room and calling his mother back. He breathes in deeply.

"Harold Styles, Where the fuck have you been? Scott & I have been worried sick.", Anne exclaims on the other end of the line.

"Mother, I can't talk right now. I'll be home tomorrow, I'm safe and with Zayn.", Harry says slowly.

"Whe-", Anne says as Harry ends the call. He's never been fond of how his mum is always on top of him. It makes him feel controlled and childish almost. A loud commotion breaks out around the corner as Louis walks by Harry directly into the dressing room. No hello, he didn't even look at Harry. Just plain ignored him. 

Harry returns to the dressing room which is now occupied with multiple people helping Louis get out of his wardrobe and getting rid of the make-up on his face. Harry takes a seat in the corner as he watches the organized chaos of make-up & wardrobe crew. It takes at least 15 minutes for them to wrap up and vacate the dressing room. It's just now Harry, Zayn, Liam, Niall, and Louis. Niall and Liam attending to Louis' needs. They are whispering silently, talking about how the show went. It's relatively quiet.

"Who are you?", Louis asks as he stares at Harry through the mirror.

"That's Harry. My best-friend since we were babies.", Zayn answers for Harry. Louis continues to stare as Harry begins to grow nervous and uneasy. Louis seems very confrontational and Harry doesn't like confrontational. Not one bit.

"I-It's nice to meet you. Big fan of your music, man.", Harry says.

"Nice to meet you too, we'll get along just amazing, right?", Louis says as he gets up from his stool and walks over to Harry. A big smile imprinted on his face. The mood goes from frigid to warm almost immediately as they both shake hands.

"So where are you from, Harry?", Louis asks while keeping eye contact with Harry.

"Originally Manchester but I stay in Cambridge.", Harry answers hesitantly.

"Ahh, I love Manchester. Great fans, and even greater men.", Louis adds to the conversation. The room breaks out in loud laughter. Harry chuckles as Louis breaks eye contact and refocuses on himself in the mirror. Zayn, once again, disappears. This time, because Marissa called him upset. 

"So, Harry. Would you want to join us for dinner? I'm famished. Niall, Louis, & I were thinking of something nice.", Liam asks.

"I guess so. Although, I'm not necessarily dressed to the nines. These overalls aren't helping either.", Harry says jokingly. Louis seems to be the only one who giggles or laughs.

"It's ok, You're with me.", Louis reassures Harry as they all gather their belongings and get ready to depart the Wembley. Zayn barges back in.

"Harry! I need you're car. Marissa is threatening to burn my belongings if I'm not back my morning!", Zayn exclaims in a panicked tone. 

"Drive carefully, please.", Harry says as he throws his keys at a panicked Zayn. Zayn then hurries out of the dressing room and disappears into the backstage area. Everyone else confused on the situation and just stunned.

"It's ok. Nothing will happen. Marissa says that all the time", Harry assures everyone.

They all leave the dressing room and start their walk to the exit. Stagehands and technicians scrambling everywhere as they prepare to dismantle the stage and get ready to go onto the next city on the tour. As they reach the tour bus, they all climb in. The bus is kept tidy with only a few loose pieces of clothing around. It smells of cannabis in the bus. With that, Harry sits down as the bus begins to move. Louis & Niall wrestling while Liam tries to pull them apart. They really do seem close. Wembley Stadium begins to fade into the distance as they drive away. It's a spectacular view outside the back window, but Harry's thoughts shatter the precious moment. How is Harry going to get home? He begins to fidget in his seat with the thought of being stranded in London overnight. Louis takes notice and sits next to him.

"You alright?", Louis asks sounding worried.

"Yah, I guess. I don't have a way home.", Harry replies with a timid tone.

"We'll drop you off. I don't think John would mind a short detour, right?", Louis adds while smiling at the driver. The driver obliges and they continue on their drive to dinner.

"S-So, um, what's the next stop on the tour? Is it far?", Harry asking quietly.

"Glasgow. Celtic Park. It's quite far, but we will get there in no time.", Liam says as he barges into the main lounge area of the tour bus.

Liam is quite protective of Louis. Louis' is his **golden** boy. He watches over him at all times, and makes sure he doesn't get himself into trouble. Harry catches on to that rather early on. He doesn't mind though. This is a one time arrangement.

...

They pull up to a building. It looks posh and clean, but nothing out of the ordinary. They all begin to cover up. Louis now boasting sunglasses and black beanie along with his black Adidas tracksuit. Liam & Niall both covered up their faces as well. Harry is confused, why would they need to cover themselves this late at night? He doesn't question it as he follows them all of the bus in a single file line. It reminds him of primary school. He giggles to himself.

"What are you laughing at?", Niall asks curiously.

"You... Just joking.", Harry says before breaking out into laughter. Liam, Louis, & John join him as Niall blankly stares at him.

He doesn't think much of it as the hostess lead them into the restaurant and to their table. It's hidden behind a large wall of glass and wine bottles. Fancy. Louis sits right across of him. Harry examines his face. Light stubble, sharp cheekbones, and beautiful ocean eyes. He would be just right for Harry if he wasn't already claimed by the teenage girl population of the world. He continues to look at Louis. His eyes only straying away when his name is called in the conversation at the table. They might be talking about sports, but that really isn't Harry's thing. Singing is, but he doesn't openly talk about it. Harry then makes the executive decision to try to get to know about everyone.

"Soo, I'd like to get to know you guys. Of course, only if you don't mind.", Harry says with a sheepish tone.

"Oh yah, of course! What would you like to know?", Louis says loudly. Louis is quite loud, but very friendly. The opposite of most famous people.

"I'm not sure. Favorite color? Favorite movie? Favorite past time?", Harry lists while looking down.

"My favorite color is Blue. My favorite movie is Grease and I love to play footie. Nialler, you're up.", Louis says without hesitation. Niall, then Liam answer the questions Harry listed but much more reservedly. Harry takes a mental note of what they each like. Maybe he'll need it for future reference.

"You're up next, curly.", Louis says as he points to Harry.

"Um, well I guess my favorite color would have to be green. Favorite movie is The Notebook, and my favorite past-time is listening to Stevie Knicks.", Harry says slowly but clearly. Louis nods and they begin a casual conversation. Something about the tour. Nothing of personal importance to Harry. He continues to engage though. Harry takes a long, hard stare at the menu. 'Giuseppe's' is the name of the restaurant. He doesn't have enough cash on him to afford the food.

"I can't afford any of this. $50 for pasta?!", Harry says as he nervously laughs. Niall & Liam look at Harry confused.

"I'm paying, curly. Chill and order whatever you'd like.", Louis says in response. Harry feels a sense relief, but a tad bit still nervous about the prices.

...

They wrap their meals up. It's possibly one of the best dishes Harry has ever indulged in. Authentic pasta works wonders for the mind. Louis, Niall, & Liam cover up again, but this time a large crowd of Paparazzi crowds the exit to Giuseppe's. "You're gonna need these.", Liam says handing Harry a pair of sunglasses. They approach the front door. Flashes already bright through the glass doors of the establishment. Harry places the shades over his eyes and is pulled out through the door by the multitude of security. 

Flashes bright. Paparazzi throwing questions at Louis. Some seemed rude, to be frank. They pushed Louis, Niall, Harry, & Liam around as they poked them with their cameras. They ask Harry questions. "Are you Louis' new boo?!". Those types of questions. They keep grabbing onto his clothes. His stained white tee now partially ripped. They reach the bus door and climb in. They are now safe from that bombardment.

"That was insane!", Harry exclaims as he laughs.

"Welcome to Louis' world.", Liam scoffs. He looks Harry up and down. "Your shirt is ripped, Harry.", Liam adds to his previous statement.

"Ah, shit. That's my only shirt.", Harry says while still laughing.

"Don't worry. Here you go, curly.", Niall adds while throwing Harry some tour merch.

"Ay! Only I can call Harry 'curly'.", Louis exclaims as he shoves Niall onto the lounge couch.

They all take a seat. Harry begins to personally reflect on this wild night. His settings clouding his thoughts. The scent of sweat mixed with cologne wafting through the air. The sight of a shirtless Niall taking shots off the stow-able table with Louis. The bus rocking back and forth. Miley Cyrus playing in the background. Typical frat party vibes. A memory Harry wishes to have erased from his mind. Time flies as they speed down the motorway back to Harry's house. Niall & Liam both heading to bed. Louis & Harry left in the lounge seated next to each other.

"Harry, can I have your number?", Louis asks silently.

"Um, yah.", Harry responds, matching Louis' tone. He grabs the phone out of Louis' hand. He hands it back.

"You better text me, loser.", Harry teases Louis.

"I'll think about it.", Louis laughs before quieting himself again.

_..._

Harry slowly climbs down the steps of the tour bus. Louis following behind him. Home Sweet Home. They both approach the front door to Harry's house slowly staying within a few feet distance of each other at all times. Harry's home is quite large. It's tall, modern, and sleek with a white, gray, and black paint job. Harry doesn't like it that much, but Louis is admiring it deeply.

"Well, curly. This is it.", Louis says.

"Yup. Goodnight, mate.", Harry replies as he puts his hand out for a handshake. Louis pulls him in for a tight hug. Who knew that much force could fit in a tiny human.

Harry fumbles for the backup key under the front mat. The 3 A.M. darkness isn't helping. He finds it and unlocks the door. He enters the tall, wide doors and closes them without looking back. Zayn was right all along, he was great person to hang with. This night was unforgettable. 

...

_*Ring Ring Ring*_

Harry jumps out of his deep sleep. He reaches for his ringing phone. It's Zayn. A feeling of disappointment rings through Harry's body. He was hoping that Louis would finally reach out. It's been 6 days since their wild night, and not one peep was heard from Niall, Liam, or Louis. He declines the call. It's bloody 5 A.M. in the goddamn morning. What is Zayn calling Harry for this early? It's probably for homework answers for their Calculus class. Zayn never seems to do his own work, and it reflects on his test scores. Harry goes to reach for his MacBook.

He puts it on his lap and opens it. He goes straight to Safari and looks up "Louis Tomlinson". Articles on Articles of his latest moves and locations flood the search results. "Louis Tomlinson spotted leaving Glasgow Nightclub", "Louis Tomlinson's mysterious new boo?!". Clickbait was the only things the tabloids could make bank off. Harry continues to scroll down. He doesn't know what he's looking for but he's sure he'll find something interesting.

Article after Article, Harry spends hours reading up on Louis' life. Harry could now say he has a general idea of Louis' story. His thoughts are disrupted by a knock on the door.

"Good Morning, Hazza.", Gemma says. "It's time for breakfast. Emmanuel made blueberry pancakes.", she adds on to the end of her statement.

"I'll be right down.", Harry says quietly as the light from the hallway blinds him.

Harry closes his MacBook and stretches his weary limbs. All this browsing and web surfing makes his limbs ache. His twin bed isn't doing him any favors also. He stands tall above his bed and makes his way to the dining room where he sees his family enjoying the blueberry pancakes already.

"Good morning, Harry! How'd you sleep?", Anne asks.

"Regular. You?", Harry asks in return as he sits at the head of the table. A birds eye of everyone at the table.

"Amazing. Zayn shot me a text asking me to remind you to call him as soon as possible. Something important.", Gemma butts into the conversation.

Emmanuel comes around to Harry and serves him pancakes. Harry sits in silence. Not once touching his breakfast. His mind blank and his senses numb for no reason. He feels as if nothings around him. It's weird to explain. He gets up from his seat and returns to his room without a word said and he gets ready for today. He changes out of his silk pajamas, brushes his pearly white teeth, and messes up his hair. His hair has to be the right amount of messy at all times or he won't be able to live with it.

He runs into Gemma as he's leaving his home. "Is everything alright?", she asks with a concerned tone. He replies with "Yeah". Simple, but effective. He get's in his car and puts the keys in the ignition. The car slightly trashed from their trip to London. Empty water bottles on the floor and the smell of cologne stained into the seats. He reverses the car out of the driveway slowly, making sure not to crash or bump into the other vehicles. His phone rings, this time, it's Louis. Harry slams the breaks and he crashes into the steering wheel. He begins to sweat.

"Good Morning, Curly.", Louis' voice says.

"Good Morning, Loubear.", Harry says with cheeky grin on his face.

"I like that nickname. I have a question for you, Harry.", Louis replies with slight giggles in between his words. Harry's grin disappears. "Would you like to join me on tour?", Louis asks.

"Fuck Yes!", Harry exclaims. Louis laughing on the other end of the line.

"I'll text you all the details. Zayn's already on his way here.", Louis adds. "I must go now, but I'll see you soon, Curly.", Louis finishes.

:"Goodbye, Loubear.", Harry says as Louis ends the call. A huge smile on his face. He pulls back into his driveway, and turns his car off.

He walks back into his home. His family still around the table, looking at Harry confused. He runs directly to his room. Grabbing all sorts of random and crazy items and shoving them into a duffle bag. Clothes, toiletries, and accessories crammed into one small bag. He's nervous. He's only known Louis for 1 week and he's joining him on tour. Is he insane? He'll find out soon.

_"Hi! I'll have a car pick you up in 15 minutes and take you to the jet. Something special for Someone special."_

Harry continues to finish up his preparations as a jet black Cadillac Escalade pulls up to his driveway. It's go time. Harry heads downstairs, suitcase in hand. "I'll see you all soon!", He says as he rushes out the door.


End file.
